Update: Abbott Proposes Alternate Dallas Debate

Updated with Wendy Davis Response

Republican gubernatorial candidate Greg Abbott is proposing an alternative statewide televised debate. Abbott announced Friday evening that he would accept an invitation from KERA, NBC5/KXAS-TV, Telemundo 39 and The Dallas Morning News. The announcement came hours after WFAA-TV reported that Abbott was backing out of an already scheduled debate on Sept. 30.

WFAA officials said the Abbott campaign formally accepted the terms of their debate back in May, but then disagreed with a proposed round table format. In a statement on their website, WFAA General Manager said:

“We are deeply disappointed that the Abbott campaign has not lived up to the commitment it made to participate in this important debate. WFAA has produced numerous debates which are balanced and fair to all the candidates. This debate would be no different. The citizens of Texas deserve to hear from the candidates for the most important office in the state.”

In a press release, Abbott said he withdrew from the WFAA debate due to an”inability to agree on a suitable format.” He said the new proposal would also allow the debate to be distributed statewide without restrictions.

“There have been reports that the Abbott campaign has ‘committed’ to another debate, but as we learned today Greg Abbott’s commitments don’t mean very much.

“Wendy Davis has already committed the evening of September 30th to a debate on WFAA. The station has asked to have a discussion on Tuesday, September 2nd to discuss options given the recent developments and, as Wendy Davis is someone who honors her commitments, the campaign looks forward to having that discussion.”

So far, the only confirmed debate before the November election is scheduled in the Rio Grande Valley, later this month. It will be distributed to Sinclair stations in Austin, San Antonio and certain other Texas markets.

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